This invention is in the field of business courtesy envelopes, and more particularly is a special purpose label arrangement set and method for use in printing PC postage onto the labels or directly onto business courtesy envelopes.
The United States Postal Service (USPS) has responded to recent technological developments in the telecommunication and computer field by developing its Information Based Indicia Program (IBIP.) The IBIP involves the development of new technology to produce new forms of postage. In so-called PC Postage, a user can purchase postage credit, and print the postage in the form of PC Postage onto a label or directly onto the mail piece. The PC Postage includes a human readable portion and a 2-dimensional barcode portion. The human readable portion typically includes the postage value, mail class, the date, the meter number, optionally a logo and the destination zip code. The barcode portion is intended to help thwart fraud, and includes information about the mail piece including the destination ZIP code, the amount of postage applied, the date and time the postage was applied, and a digital signature so that the USPS can validate the authenticity of the postage.
In one preferred embodiment of PC Postage, a user will subscribe to a third party central server location, such as Stamps.com (of Santa Monica, Calif.), and by using postage software made available by the central server location, postage value can be downloaded to the user""s computer. The user can then print the postage indicia, by an ordinary laser or ink jet printer, roll label-type printer, or other known printer, directly onto the mail piece itself (e.g. onto a business envelope), or onto a label to be applied to the mail piece. This postage software works in conjunction with other software programs, such as word processing, accounting, database, and contact management software to allow a user to conveniently print out PC Postage at the same time that addressee and bar code information is printed (and also the sender""s return address.)
In order to permit the sophisticated mail handling and optical reading equipment at the USPS to properly interpret the PC Postage and addressee information, it is important that the postage indicia be applied properly. The USPS has established guidelines directed to the margins, label sizes, and placement of the Postage Indicia, and the size, placement, and other characteristics of the POSTNET (POStal Numeric Encoding Technique) bar codes, and any facing identification mark (FIM) on mail pieces. These guidelines are contained in the Domestic Mail Manual (DMM) and Title 39, Code of Federal Register (CFR), Part 111, and USPS Publication No. 25 xe2x80x9cDesigning Letter Mailxe2x80x9d.
A facing identification mark (FIM)is a mark printed on an envelope for facing purposes. A FIM may preferably be a pattern of vertical bars printed in the upper right area of the front side a mail piece, to the left of the indicia space for a stamp, metering or PC postage. A FIM pattern is essentially a nine-bit code consisting of bars and no-bar place holders (in which the bars corresponding to a binary 1 and no bars correspond to a binary 0.) FIM patterns serves two major purposes. The FIM patterns allow mailpieces that do not contain luminescent stamps or meter imprints (such as business reply mail and official government mail) to be faced (oriented) and canceled (postmarked) by USPS machinery. FIM patterns also permit business reply mail and courtesy reply mail to be separated from other letters and cards for direct processing by optical character readers (OCRs) or barcode sorters (BCSs). This helps in achieving faster processing times.
Other countries"" posts have various other automated postage handling markings in lieu of FIM markings (xe2x80x9cAutomated postage handling markingsxe2x80x9d.) The inventors anticipate that as foreign countries begin accepting PC postage, a need will arise for special purpose labels and processes for printing postage indicia directly onto the special purpose labels designed to work with envelopes bearing the automated postage handling markings.
There are presently four different FIM markings used in the U.S.A. FIM A is used for courtesy reply mail. FIM B is used for business reply mail, penalty mail, or franked mail without a POSTNET barcode. FIM C is used for business reply mail, penalty mail, or franked mail with a POSTNET barcode. In addition, FIM D is typically used for IBIP mailings, except that a FIM A is required when the FIM pattern is preprinted onto a business courtesy envelope. Notwithstanding which particular FIM pattern is applied, under USPS regulations, there are regulations and guidelines concerning the size and placement of the FIM pattern. Likewise, foreign countries have regulations concerning where the automated postage handling markings are placed.
The FIM pattern is printed in a FIM clear zone, in which no other printing may appear. The FIM clear zone is a rectangular sized zone extending from downwardly 0.625 inches from the upper edge of the mail piece and is located between 3 inches and 1.750 inches from the right side edge. The FIM bars must be 0.625 inch xc2x10.125 inch high and 0.03125 inch xc2x10.008 inch wide. The rightmost bar of the FIM must be 2 inches xc2x10.125 inch from the right edge of the mail piece. The tops of the FIM bars must be no lower than 0.125 inch from the top of mail piece and the bottoms of the FIM bars should touch the bottom edge of the FIM clear zone but must not be more than 0.125 inch above or below that edge.
In view of the presence of FIM patterns on business courtesy mail pieces, which can comprise a relatively large percentage of PC postage users"" mailing needs, it would be useful to have PC postage labels and method for printing PC postage onto labels and directly onto envelopes that are designed for use with mail pieces with FIM patterns.
There accordingly are opportunities for IBIP vendors to extend their added value into the area of xe2x80x9cBusiness Courtesyxe2x80x9d mailings. Business Courtesy mailings can be referred to as pieces mailed in envelopes that are provided to a user by an outside business for the primary purpose of facilitating that user""s payment of a bill or other response to the business. These mail items are not pre-paid by the business, and have a number of attributes, including the following. The destination address will typically be provided, either through a pre-printing on the envelope or by using a windowed envelope that exposes the destination address. The FIM pattern may or may not be preprinted onto the envelope. Where a FIM pattern appears, it is typically of the xe2x80x9cFIM Axe2x80x9d type. The return address may or may not be printed onto the envelope. Similarly, as such time as foreign countries adopt PC postage, so to will a need arise for PC postage solutions for business courtesy envelopes.
From a standpoint of the USPS IBIP vendors and customers, the ability to enable PC Postage for all of a customer""s needs, including IBIP vendor support of business courtesy mail, is highly advantageous to PC Postage customer and provides customers with a complete postage solution.